Thursday, March 17, 2011

St. Patrick’s Day.It’s the day we wear green and celebrate shamrocks, the luck o' the Irish, and leprechauns.

What are leprechauns? Oh yes - cute, mischievous, little redheads!

Carrot tops. Gingers. Redheads are known for being fiery, high-strung, hot-tempered, and a lot to handle...but totally worth it. And then there are the famous ladies, like Maureen O'Hara, Rita Hayworth, Katharine Hepburn, and Julia Roberts. Pretty good company to be in, I'd say.

I've always loved being a redhead. It's my favorite physical trait. My hair has been called gorgeous and luscious and people often want to run their fingers through it. A good friend of mine once nicknamed me "Grace Adler." An ex-boyfriend said I looked like Nicole Kidman. (Ha!)

And so, in honor of Cute, Mischievous Redhead Day, here are some fun facts and quotes about redheads!

The most rare hair color in humans is red.

The highest percentage of natural redheads in the world is in Scotland (13%), followed closely by Ireland with 10%. In the US, about 2% of the population are natural redheads

Multiple studies have shown that redheads need about 20% more anesthetic during surgery to keep them sedated than non-redheads.

In ancient Rome, redheaded slaves were often more expensive than those with other hair color.

Red hair is a recessive trait, which means that a child must inherit one red hair gene from each parent. Recessive traits often come in pairs, and redheads are more likely than other people to be left handed. (Interesting. Both my sister and I are redheads and neither of us are left-handed.)

"Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a gorgeous redhead." -Lucille Ball

"You'd find it easier to be bad than good if you had red hair," said Anne reproachfully. "People who haven't red hair don't know what trouble is."-Anne to Marilla in "Anne of Green Gables"

"Nobody who has known a redhead can say that redheads are tame. Even shy redheads have a burning spark of adventure inside them. Opinionated, hotheaded, logical, loyal, friendly, reserved, whatever the redheads' personality, you can bet they'll have SCADS of it!" -Review of The Redhead Encyclopedia

"I used to hate my red hair, but now I love the attention I get with it. I think that very smart, daring men love red hair, and I love that in a man." -John Wayne stealing a kiss from Maureen O'Hara

"When a fellow has a home and a dear, little, red-haired wife in it, what more need he ask of life?" -Gilbert in "Anne's House of Dreams"

Happy Cute, Mischievous Redhead Day from one of their very own. Come to think of it, that should be every day!